Chapter 60: Didara's Defection?
Su Xiao and his group successfully arrived within the borders of Konoha. The possibility of Onoki continuing to pursue them was slim. Even if the Five Great Ninja Villages had formed a temporary alliance, Onoki couldn't lead a large force of Iwa-nin into the Land of Fire—this was a matter of political boundaries between villages.
Indeed, Su Xiao and the others had been resting for a long time in a forest near the Land of Fire's border, and still no Iwa-nin had appeared in pursuit.
Overall, this attack on Iwagakure Village hadn't caused Su Xiao much loss—just some time spent. The gains weren't significant either, only killing one Jonin and a few Chunin.
Perhaps the flash of the Legendary Chest had exhausted Su Xiao's recent luck, as killing that Jonin didn't drop a chest. As for World Source gains, he obtained a total of 1.7%.
Killing that Jonin earned Su Xiao 1.5% of the World Source, with the rest coming from the Chunin kills.
This left Su Xiao somewhat puzzled. Last time he entered the Naruto World, killing a Kirigakure Anbu had yielded nearly 2% World Source, yet this Iwa Jonin he killed was certainly stronger than those Anbu.
This led Su Xiao to conclude that the World Source gained from killing enemies wasn't fixed but varied based on circumstances. After long exploration, he reached the following conclusions.
First, the amount of World Source gained was closely tied to the power gap between him and the enemy. His own strength was likely calculated based on his power when he first entered the derivative world.
The smaller the gap between Su Xiao and his enemy, the more World Source he gained. If the enemy far surpassed him, he'd gain even more World Source.
If Su Xiao's power completely overwhelmed the enemy, the World Source gained after killing them would be very small, or even zero.
Moreover, the amount of World Source gained from killing plot characters wasn't just related to their strength but also their status, identity, and so on.
For example, if Su Xiao killed the Fire Country Daimyo, he'd surely gain a lot of World Source. Even if the Daimyo was weak, his high position meant power was part of his strength.
Su Xiao had once killed a king in his first derivative world—King Philip Herbert of the Goa Kingdom in the One Piece World.
Herbert was very weak, but he was a king. After killing him, Su Xiao obtained a very special white chest.
Su Xiao still remembered the appearance of that chest. It looked different from any chest he'd ever seen. Opening it, he obtained the [World Tree Ring].
It was because of the [World Tree Ring] that he could trade with Reincarnation Paradise to obtain the inheritance of the Shadow of Law Destruction, giving him a high starting point in his second derivative world.
Back then, Su Xiao didn't recognize its value, thinking the [World Tree Ring] was just a rare item.
[World Tree Ring]
Quality: White
Rating: ???
Description: This is a ring crafted from Adam Wood. Do not underestimate it; its material comes from the core of the Adam Tree, which can also be called the World Tree—a pillar of the One Piece World.
...
A pillar of a derivative world, rating ???. Now it seemed, even if the [World Tree Ring] couldn't be directly equipped, it could be exchanged for a large amount of World Source.
If Su Xiao obtained the [World Tree Ring] now, he could get even more benefits. Unfortunately, he'd only ever obtained that special white-quality chest once and never seen it again.
As Su Xiao sat by a small stream recalling the past, footsteps came from behind—not familiar ones.
Su Xiao turned to see Didara, who had just woken up not long ago and was nearby replenishing his clay. Without clay, Didara's combat power dropped by at least 80%.
"Thanks for this time."
Didara walked to the stream, crouched down, and cupped some clear water to wash his face, wincing in pain.
"Oh."
Su Xiao showed little reaction, and Didara said nothing more.
"The Dawn Organization won't last much longer."
Su Xiao suddenly spoke.
"Huh?"
Didara, holding water in his hands, looked at Su Xiao as the clear liquid seeped through his fingers.
"Never mind that half the members are already dead. The current Dawn can't satisfy Madara's appetite."
Su Xiao gestured to Amu nearby. Amu, sitting on the grass, hesitated for a moment before walking over and handing his beloved cloth bag to Su Xiao.
Su Xiao pulled out a wild fruit he'd never seen before. Whether it was Amu's talent or something else, the wild fruits he found were mysteriously delicious.
Su Xiao took three fruits from the bag. Amu, this three-meter-tall killing machine, looked quite aggrieved—he'd saved these fruits for last, as the best things should be kept for the end.
Seeing Amu's almost tearful cow face, Su Xiao handed the bag back to him.
Amu quickly hugged the bag, opened it, and checked the fruits inside. Bubu Wang beside him swallowed hard, having eyed them for a long time.
With a crunch, sweet and sour juice burst in Su Xiao's mouth, a faint fragrance filling his senses.
"Madara's appetite?"
Didara shook the water off his hands.
"Yeah. Madara wants to wage war against all Five Great Ninja Villages at once. With the Dawn's current combat power, there's no way they can face the allied forces of the five villages."
"It... does seem that way."
Didara fell into thought.
"Come to think of it, I joined the Dawn mainly to prove that Explosion Release is the true art, not Itachi's Sharingan. Itachi's dead now, so I've lost my rival."
Didara stood up with a whoosh.
"Not only is Itachi dead, but the leader Nagato is too. After both of them died, I've always felt the Dawn was strange. And Madara's ideal is clearly no good—what's this Moon's Eye plan? If that happens, how can I keep exploring art? But..."
Didara seemed to have discovered a 'new world,' a dangerous glint flashing in his eyes.
"What, are you planning to leave the Dawn? Since its founding, no one has ever left. To leave the Dawn, you can only defect."
"..."
Didara didn't speak, seemingly lost in thought.
The reason Su Xiao stayed in the Dawn was that he was a collaborator with Obito, and their initial goals were the same—to ignite war in the ninja world.
As for Kisame, he had originally been recruited into the Dawn by Obito, which was why he chose to stay.
Sasuke was being used by Obito, kept around through various excuses.
Didara was different. His original purpose in joining the Dawn was to defeat Itachi and prove that his Explosion Release was the true art. With Itachi dead, Didara's rival was gone. As for Sasuke, after some time interacting, Didara couldn't put Sasuke on the same level as Itachi.
Moreover, Didara's original leader was Nagato, not Obito. He truly had no reason to stay.
In fact, Didara had already been considering whether to leave the Dawn.
"This attack on Iwagakure—did Madara come?"
A forest breeze blew, lifting a few leaves.
"Yeah."
"I see."
Didara sighed, temporarily abandoning the idea of leaving the Dawn.